Arsenal 3 Tottenham 0: Wenger compares RVP to Henry and Bergkamp

02 November 2009 07:59

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Robbie Keane was right, the Tottenham bench did look strong. It was on the pitch they had problems, punished for defensive doziness by a striker hailed by Arsene Wenger as two Arsenal legends rolled into one.

Robin van Persie has the vision and creativity of Dennis Bergkamp combined with the goal threat of Thierry Henry, according to manager Wenger. That, in any language, has to be some compliment.

'He can be the best passer in the League and the best goalscorer in the League,' said the Arsenal boss. 'He is an intelligent player, he turns very quickly, the timing of his runs is fantastic and he has a short back-lift.

Robin's best: Van Persie's stellar performance prompted Arsene Wenger to describe his striker as having the qualities of Arsenal legends Thierry Henry (bottom right) and Dennis Bergkamp (bottom left) rolled into one player

'Around the box he has what is very difficult to give a striker. He moves away from defenders in a very, very perfect way. He is much stronger than people expect. He uses his body well. He learned to play football in the street.'

Van Persie has also answered questions about his fitness and attitude recently. He has not missed a Barclays Premier League game and Arsenal manage him carefully, sometimes resting him in Europe.

'He understands his body more and we know more what he needs,' said Wenger. 'He is one of our leaders in the dressing-room. He speaks his mind, you know, the Dutch way. But he has humility too.'

EURO WATCHAZ Alkmaar (at Arsenal, Wednesday): The Dutch champions arrive in good spirits after a 1-0 victory at Groningen but they still sit only sixth in Eredivisie.

Alkmaar simply have to win at the Emirates to have any chance of progressing as they are third in the group.

Two goals against Spurs took Van Persie's tally to seven in the League this season, and Wenger claims 25 is a realistic target . 'Why not?' said the manager.

'If you look at the chances since the beginning of the season, you cannot say he won't reach it.'

His first goal was about awareness and acceleration to beat Ledley King to Bacary Sagna's cross and poke the ball past goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes.

Then Cesc Fabregas made it 2-0 within 11 seconds of the restart. Wilson Palacios surrendered possession feebly in midfield and the Arsenal captain was away, squeezing between Palacios and Tom Huddlestone, nutmegging King and finishing coolly.

Van Persie's second goal, Arsenal's third, was a tap into an empty net after Gomes and King failed to clear from Sagna.

'It always feels good to beat Spurs,' said Van Persie. 'It even feels good when we don't play them and they get beaten, so it's especially good when we've played them. All week people at the training ground are speaking about this game. Everyone is excited and we are, too.'

Harry Redknapp insists his team remain genuine top-four contenders and hit back at Glenn Hoddle, who claimed on TV that they showed no fight.

'That's Glenn's opinion,' said the Spurs boss. 'My team don't lack fight. We can still get into the Champions League. We have a terrific team. People will question it, but it's nice proving people wrong in life.'

Sebastien Bassong, however, was less optimistic. 'To be in the top four, we need more, much more,' said Bassong, who faces five weeks out after tearing a hamstring in stoppage time.

'It was really not a good day for me or the club or the fans. It was the worst day of the season. In one minute we messed up the whole game. We made two mistakes and we lost the game.'